The Gifts of Time
by MassChaosTheory
Summary: The titans are forced to confront what could not be foreseen. As time is altered, a new hero must help the Titan's defeat the coming darkness. But evil isn't all that plagues the teens. BBRAE, some RobStar, not much though.
1. Prologue

**Hello everyone. This is going to be a long one, so try not to lose patience! Oh, and I promise all of the chapters are going to be way longer than this. This story takes place months after the fall of the Brotherhood of Evil, so I figured that I would leave some time between chapters and do short stories about the time inbetween! I hope you all enjoy! Oh, and this story integrates parts from another story I wrote. I combined characters and made some fit right in. Don't worry though! I made sure not to change anything vital! **

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_From eternities womb_

_Five beings rose_

_And from five realms_

_Each sentient chose_

'It's quiet,' the monstrous dragon of time thought to himself, 'far too much so for it to be anything good.'

With his eyes, he gazed out to survey the tiny specks of light that were every existence in his realm. With his mind, he got much more detail. Every living thing, every non-living thing, and every soul traveling to and from the void. All at one. He sensed it all. Life and death. Good and evil. Large and small. Hot and cold. Balance.

Silence.

Peace.

His eyes closed, and Alkolon Darkfire, Lord of the Continuum, calmly went back to his meditation. His mind had been troubled ever since the demon-born, Trigon, had broken through the dimensional barrier and invaded his realm. It was right around 2 decades ago now since the Church of Blood had betrayed their own existence to allow the demon passage.

_Chromerium, the Pure_

_Ruled Light's perfect world_

He had broken the pact. He had risked another Great War. Why?

_And Trigon, for his evil_

_To the Darkness he was hurled_

The dragon's eyes snapped open once more. There was a looming presence; something he just couldn't shake…

_Geovorix was of matter_

_Thus Matter he became_

Trigon's invasion left his universe in ruins. Millions of worlds corrupted. Millions more burned to cinders…

_And Netheria, born of energy_

_Found her way to her reign_

Every moment since he has cast Trigon back to the depths of his void was spent in meditation. The very core of his being hated his demonic brethren. He hated that even in his own realm, in the apex of his power, the vile hell spawn nearly destroyed him.

It would not happen again…

_Alkolon Darkfire, dragon-born_

_Time's ebb, to him, gave rise_

_Took his place in the multiverse_

_The last one of the five_

And there it was. He felt it, he knew it, and there was no mistake about it. The presence of pure darkness. Trigon, it seemed, was willing to try again. As if a gun had sounded, the great dragon snapped out of meditation and flew across the darkness of the Continuum, determined to find the source and expel the bastard demon from his realm once and for all.

_The dimensions had their guardians_

_All existence they foreran_

_Gates were sealed, doors were shut_

_And the universe began._

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**Hahaha sorry for my corny poetry! I suck at poems, but oh well. I'll try to have the first real chapter up as soon as i can, but keep an eye out for other short stories to give you some background on this one!**

**Oh, and of course, I appreciate any constructive comments!**


	2. The Physical Pain of Brawn and Brain

**Hello again! Finally found the time to do this! I hope it's up to your expectations! I would appreciate and constructive criticism you may have to offer! Oh, and of course, Thanks for reading!**

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**Chapter 1**

_It's always darkest before the dawn…_

Beast Boy sat up with a start. Sweat soaked his sheets, while fear and angst plagued his thoughts. _I could have sworn I just heard that,_ he thought to himself. Nervously looking around, he attempted to determine the source of his fright. Finding little more than his dirty room and a beam of light on the horizon, he fell back to his mattress with a sigh.

"Maybe I really am starting to lose it," the changeling wondered aloud. It had been 3 days since Beast Boy had even the slightest wink of sleep. It seemed like every time he was about to fall into a pleasant slumber, he was woken up by a voice, a creek, or movement on the floor. Thoughts ravaged his mind as he closed his forest green eyes and attempted to lose himself.

_Terra…_

He flew up again. This time, however, a stray tear joined the sweat on his blanket. His heart had been shattered since _that_ day. It seemed as if every ounce of hope had been drained from his body. Even his friends noticed the change; less immature jokes (for which Raven was unsurprisingly thankful for), more intense combat practice (which Robin encouraged), and his appetite had gone down to the point where he barely ate enough to sustain himself.

His eyes were drawn towards the window as the sun finally rose over the buildings of Jump City. He gave a squint and covered his eyes as the dawn brought forth a new day.

_Darkest before the dawn, huh? _He thought to himself. _Yeah right._

He forced himself to get up, thought under normal circumstances he wouldn't be seen outside of his room for nearly 5 more hours. Slowly, the green teen dressed himself in his jumpsuit and shoes before sitting back down and staring at the door. He let out one last heavy sigh before thrusting himself onto his feet and out of his door.

As he trudged towards the bathroom, he began to experience something new. Time seemed to have no meaning as he trudged down the darkened corridor of Titan's Tower. Not quite sure if something was amiss or if it was just his lack of sleep, Beast boy ignored it and continued into the bathroom.

"Maybe a hot shower will kick me into gear," he said. Though his voice lacked hope, he still possessed the one thing that could never be taken away from him: his undying will to try. As he slowly undressed himself and turned the water on, he noticed that it was going slower than usual. It seemed to take forever for the water to hit the floor.

_Wow,_ he thought to himself, _I must be reallllly out of it…_

He gave his eyes a quick rub, but before he could remove his hands he was startled by the sound of water hitting tile as time resumed its normal course.

_Ugh_, he thought as he stepped in, disregarding the what he had just witnessed ,_ this is going to be a looooong day._

"NO!"

Raven sat up, clutching her covers, eyes wide with fear. A nightmare had wrenched her from her attempted slumber. It was not the first of the night, nor did she expect it to be the last. She gave a sigh and closed her eyes. _It's all in my mind…_ she told herself. _It can't happen again… he's gone…_ Her head hit her pillow, and the fatigue that enveloped her body took hold.

_What you have concealed, you shall become…_

Books flew off their respective shelves. Clothes that we one neatly tucked into her closet were tossed across the room. Her window shattered. Raven sat up again, eyes wider than before. She nervously looked around and scanned every shadow.

_I know it's over_, she cautiously thought,_ but I know I heard that…_

A knock broke the silence of Raven's room, and the muffled voice of a concerned friend filled her ears.

"Raven," Robin asked, with a slight tone of worry in his voice, "is everything okay in there?"

"Everything's fine," Raven breathed. She caught a quick look at her clock. _6:54 AM_. "Just a nightmare. I'll be fine."

She could feel his worried emotion wash over him, and then she heard a sigh as he proceeded down the hall. She felt sweat dripping down her face. She reached to brush it away, but as she touched her head, a searing pain ripped through her forehead. About two days ago, Raven had fallen victim to a terrible migraine headache. She was unable to move, unable to see, and worst of all was unable to keep her power in check. Today was the first day that she could even open her eyes to something other than a blinding light.

As her mind woke with her body, she began to feel groggy and nauseous. _I bet a shower would do me wonders,_ she thought. Becoming aware of her body's condition, she only confirmed her thoughts. In the last three days she had neither showered nor changed clothing. Her stomach did flips as she thought more about it.

Raven slowly got up, her leotard slipping against the oil build-up on her skin. She felt her throat tighten as her stomach gave a squeeze. Running to the bathroom, Raven barely missed the toilet as she spewed what was left of the meal she attempted to keep down last night.

Catching her breath, Raven silently wished for today to be as peaceful as possible. Taking one last look at what she had just expelled, she flushed it away and slowly walked towards her bed. Using her powers to bring the nearest uniform to her, she re-entered her bathroom and started the shower.

The early morning was rarely seen by those other than Robin and Raven. Today, however, Cyborg was up early and cooking a massive breakfast for his team. Eggs, waffles, French toast, and bacon; every burner on the stove was occupied. Though he knew not to everyone up at this particular hour of the morning, he successfully reasoned that the smell of a hearty breakfast would wake the others.

Almost as if on cue, Robin and Starfire walked in, arms interlocked. Cyborg cast a sly grin, but decided against any witty remarks. His attention was too preoccupied by the perfection of his creation. Though tired, they were both eager to have at their soon to be plates.

"Cyborg," Starfire asked, with a slight yawn, "What is the occasion? Is the day of someone's birth slipped my memory?"

Robin's eye's opened slightly wider. _Had he forgotten something…?_

"Haha, no Star." Cyborg chuckled, "I just felt like my friends could use a good meal! It's been a while since I cooked for ya anyways."

Robin's racing mind was quelled, and his regular early morning look took its place. Be that as it may, Starfire's expression was now that of pure bliss. She gave a slight squeal and looked at Robin.

"How did I ever get such wonderful friends?!" she exclaimed, squeezing her beloved. Cyborg smirked again, but was too preoccupied by the readiness of breakfast and forgot to have his fun.

At that moment, the doors to the common room swept open and Raven walked in. Her stomach growled with hunger as she inhaled the glorious aroma of the four-part breakfast. Without a word, she sat next to Starfire who gave a look of concern.

"Friend Raven! It is good to see that you have ceased the ached of your head and joined us for breakfast! Is it not wonderful that Cyborg has prepared all of this wonderful food for us?" Starfire squealed.

Raven let out a slight groan, but nodded in agreement. After her little episode in her room, she wasn't sure if she could keep anything down. However, her stomach begged for nourishment so she decided to take the risk.

A plate was placed in front of the seated teens as Cyborg took his place at the table.

"Eat it while it's hot!" he exclaimed. Wasting no time, he dove in and began devouring the contents of his meal. Starfire and Robin too their time, shooting glances at one another and giggling furiously. Raven began to eat, and an overwhelming satisfaction overtook her. The warm, gooey eggs, the perfectly crisped bacon; her stomach was in heaven. After days of being deprived of anything but crackers and what little tea she could keep down it was good to finally have some sustenance.

The doors to the common room swept open again. Beast boy entered the room with the same glum expression he had been wearing recently. Everyone else, however, was wearing a look of shock.

"Beast boy?" Starfire asked quizzically.

"Dude!" Cyborg shouted, causing Raven to slightly cringe, "I don't think I've ever seen you up this early!"

"Couldn't sleep," Beast boy replied. Without so much as taking time to think, he grabbed the soy milk from the fridge and a glass and sat down next to his metallic friend. Cyborg still wore a look of shock, but refused to let his food get cold.

"Raven?"

The pale girl stopped in mid bite to look at her questioner. She was shocked to see him up so early. She hadn't even noticed he was there…

"I'm glad you're migraine finally went away," he said plainly. Giving a weak smile, he went back to his milk. Raven stared. _Did he really just say that?_ Her thoughts were interrupted by another voice.

"Beast boy, are you ok?" Robin asked with concern. "You look really tired, and you haven't been as cheery as usual."

The green teen's expression remained unchanged. Turning to look at the boy wonder he responded with minimal tone.

"I've just been feeling a little under the weather recently."

Robin refused to fully believe his answer, so he prodded with another question.

"But your performance during workouts and combat practice has been phenomenal. If you'd been feeling sick, those would have fallen a little. Anything you need to talk about?"

"No," Beast boy said. "It would probably help, but I'm not sure what I would say."

With that, the shape shifter stood up, put his glass in the sink, returned his milk to the fridge, and left the room.

"That was awkward," Raven said in her usual monotone. Though she masked it, she was concerned for her friend. He had been acting strange. _Well, strange for Beast boy_, she said to herself.

The rest of the team had finished their meals. Life, as it seemed, waited for no one. Raven finished her breakfast, and began to rinse off her plate. Suddenly, the plate shattered and Raven fell over.

"Raven!" screamed Starfire. She flew over to her fallen comrade and began to investigate her body for wounds. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," Raven lied. "Just a little aftershock from the migraine. Nothing big." But what she wasn't telling her friends was that the migraine had nothing to do with it. She had been holding her plate one second, and then the next, she was watching herself burning. A fire raged around her, and a deep demonic voice roared in her mind.

"Are you sure?" Robin asked, unconvinced. "Things weren't exploding too much when you were having your migraine…"

"I'm sure," Raven uttered quickly. She pulled herself off and used her powers to move the broken pieces of the plate into the garbage. Then without another word, she left the room to go meditate on the roof.

Cyborg, Robin, and Starfire were stunned. Cyborg was the first to break the silence, which was routine for this sort of thing.

"So," he said grinning at Robin. "Ready to get your butt kicked?" Cyborg beckoned to the TV and the two GameStation controllers on the floor.

"I'm good for now," Robin responded. He clutched Starfire's hand and led her over to the couch. The two embraced each other and fell asleep without a seconds notice.

Let down, and now lacking entertainment, Cyborg walked off to the Titan's Gym in the tower. He was not about to let such a hearty meal fuel him for nothing.

Back in his room, Beast boy leaned with his back against his door and slumped down to the floor. His mind was filled with thoughts of pain and suffering. _What did I do to deserve this?_ He asked himself.

Sad and confused, he closed his eyes as tears began to stream down his face. He felt sad. He felt alone. Amidst his best friends, he felt abandoned. And worst of all, he did not know why. _I feel like it's all my fault that Terra wants to remember none of this_. He knew he could never tell his friends. They would tell him to just get over it. Robin would say that it's her way of coping. Cyborg would make a joke. Starfire would listen, but she would not know how to help. Raven would just yell at him. _It's not like she doesn't know what it's like…_

He just wanted someone to have a sympathetic ear. Someone to not only listen, but to understand his suffering. Someone to help him through his misery and get him back to his old, happy-go-lucky self. He wanted what Robin and Starfire shared. Somewhere in his chest, his heart gave a squeeze. His hand clutched the region over his heart. He gave a sigh and looked around. _Wow,_ he thought with a slight hint of disgust. _It _is_ pretty messy in here… I guess it wouldn't hurt to clean it up a little._

With that, Beast boy set off to the task of attempting to clean up his room. One moldy sock after another was tossed into a basket. Old pizza boxes were tossed in the garbage, and dirty plates with spoiled food were piled up to be taken into the kitchen.

After an hour or so, Beast boy resumed his slumped position on his door. His room was spotless, his bed was made, his dirty clothes were in the washer, and it no longer smelled of body odor and tofu in his room. He smiled proudly at his accomplishment and decided that he had earned a good round or 5 of video games to cheer him up.

As he proceeded down the hall, he began to realize what had just happened. He had just _cleaned_. And it wasn't just anything, it was his _room_.

"Maybe there isn't anything wrong with me," he stated to the air. "Maybe something is finally right…"

On the roof, Raven's feet became reacquainted with the roof of Titan's Tower. Her meditation had removed the after effects of her migraine headache, and she now felt completely awake and restored. Smiling to herself, she walked to the door, and proceeded down the stairs.

_I hope Beast boy is feeling a little better_, she thought to herself. _Wait, am I really that concerned? He'll be fine. He always is. He probably just found that stupid picture of Terra. Stupid, obnoxious, two-faced, good for nothing bitch…_ She stopped walked. _STOP. Why am I getting so worked up over this? _Shrugging, she cleared her mind and continued down the stairs.

As if it were perfectly timed, her foot hit the bottom step as all light was extinguished from her eyes. There was nothing. She couldn't feel, taste, see, hear, or touch anything. And then it was hot. Too hot to be natural.

Then, in a brilliant display of fury, flames erupted around her, encompassing the body of the timid teenager. The darkness was replaced by an image of Titan's Tower on fire, in a state of disrepair. It looked as if someone had attacked the tower and set it ablaze.

"Robin?" she called out to her friends to make sure they were unharmed by this unforeseeable event. "Cyborg? Starfire?! BEAST BOY?!"

There was no response. She attempted to feel them out using her abilities as an empath, but no one could be found. Even Beast boy's fountain of emotion could not be detected.

She flew out of the roof door to find her attack her. The sight made her scream.

The city was in ruins, molten lava had taken the place of the ocean, and the sky's were darkened by clouds.

"No…" she said in a panic. "I stopped this… this is over… it's just a memory… it has to be…"

She turned to come face to face with a smiling demon. His fangs subtly creeping out from behind his monstrous lips. White hair flowed from his head, and 4 red eyes pierced Raven's soul.

"Hello daughter," Trigon bellowed. "Did you really think that you'd be rid of me that easily?"

"No!" Raven shouted. Her hands pressed against her temples. "You're not here, this can't be real!"

Trigon's smile enlarged. His face split into a full teeth smile. He grabbed Raven and held her close to his face.

"I will always be real," he smirked, "because I will always exist. There is nothing you can do to change it, little girl. You are mortal, but my power transcends everything you know!"

Trigon's smile turned into a menacing frown. Eye's glowing with power, he held Raven from him with his arm fully extended.

"And there is nothing that you can do to stop my return!" he shouted with vengeance.

Trigon began to squeeze. Slowly, Raven could feel her life being sucked away. Everything she had done had been meaningless… nothing could save the world now…

It was at that moment, Raven noticed something new. There was a new pair of eyes behind Trigon. They were glaring with unspeakable hate.

Fierce, intense pain ripped through her body. As she felt her bones crack and snap, she felt a stray tear stroll down her face in admittance of defeat…

The sound of the Titan's alarm made Raven's eyes snap open. She was on the ground and the end of the stairs. Sweat had soaked through her hood and cloak. She looked around. Everything was intact and normal. She felt her body. Everything was in its place, no fractures. Her heart was racing at her vision, but as far as she knew, Trigon was gone. She watched him ripped apart by her power…

Shaking her head, Raven quickly walked into the common room. Jump City was in trouble, and the over worried mind of a teenage superhero was not about to stop her from doing her duty.

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**Hopefully, it leave you wanting more instead of wanting me to stop hahahahahahaha**

**Let me know what you think!**


	3. The First of Many

**For all of you that have been reading my stuff, I should probably start of by saying sorry I haven't updated in 34988762376549675345 years. I've had computer problems, health problems, writers block, school work, blah blah blah. Pretty much if it could go wrong, it did. Sooo... I'm sorry!! But! I would like to let you know that i promise to update more often. And don't think that i will ever leave a story unfinished. Anywho, I personally want to get to the middle chapters when the new character gets introduced and the real stuff starts, but I've gotta do intros because jumping into things just ends up messy. Alrighty then. I hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter 2: A First of Many**

It always seemed so peaceful in Jump City. The buildings grasping towards the sky, the water perfectly reflecting the sun; if it wasn't for the Crime Scanner, the Teen Titan's would never know when the city needed help. Of course, there was the occasional monster or villain that stood out, but that was not the case today.

Dr. Light had broken into the testing center at SolarCel, a company that researched solar power and a means to effectively use the sun's light and radiation as a power source. Police were on the scene attempting to stop him, but their efforts were no match for his suit's power. It was times like this that reminded the city where their extra tax percent went.

Through the city, the screeching of tired was heard as Cyborg and Robin sped to the scene in the T-Car and R-Cycle. Starfire, Beast Boy, and Raven were not far behind, surveying the situation as best they could from above. As they neared the sight of the break in, they could see the flashing lights of the already positioned police cars, and the flash of explosions.

Officers fell back behind cover as the Titan's approached. Robin slid to a stop with Cyborg following in suit. Raven and Starfire landed not soon after.

"Beast Boy," Robin said opening his communicator, "see if you can enter the building from above. You may be able to get a better flanking position on him."

There was no response until the Boy Wonder way a green bird make its way to the roof of the SolarCel building. After a moment of static, the rest of the team caught his slightly winded response.

"No problem," Beast Boy breathed into the communicator, "but give me a few, I'm exhausted!"

"There's no time!" Robin yelled as another explosion shook the street. "Get down there now!"

This time, there was no response at all. Not like they expected one, but it still irritated Robin. He moved forward, slightly ahead of the Police car they were behind to survey the situation. One of the engineers from the building that managed to get out ran over to the other three. Out of breath and bleeding slightly, he looked panicked.

"You have to stop him!" he panted. "He's going to steal the prototype Photon Irradiator!"

Cyborg's serious expression instantly turned from serious to extremely worried. His teammates would have shared his concern, if they knew what he knew.

"WHAT?" He yelled, "I thought that was still experimental? I didn't know you guys were in the testing phase yet!"

"We were," the engineer responded. "Up until last week, it was all just an experiment. But then, one of our guys had a break through, and it worked. So, our superiors decided to send it to testing."

Though his explanation was almost over, two police officers and a handful of paramedics ran over and pulled him to the back of an ambulance where they began to treat his wounds. Cyborg turned to Raven and Starfire to explain the seriousness of the situation.

"So, what exactly does a Photon Irradiator do?" Raven asked with a quizzical look about her.

"This was supposed to be a huge break for SolarCel," Cyborg explained. "It's supposed to take the light from the sun and turn it into massive amounts of power. But it can also work backwards."

"Meaning Dr. Light could use his suits power to generate a lot of even more powerful light." Raven concluded.

Starfire gasped.

"The Dr. Light must not be allowed to obtain such a device!" she yelled. Just then, Robin came back over with a plan of attack

"Listen up team," he said with his communicator open so Beast Boy could listen in. "We're going to go in seperatly. Raven, Cyborg; you two are going to take the east side of the building. Cyborg, Raven, you can phase through the wall and assault his left flank. Starfire and I will create a diversion from the right, and Beast Boy will attempt to disable his suit from behind."

Giving the team a moment to run through it again, Robin turned to Starfire who had her normal cheerful expression back. He smiled back at her and turned back to the team.

"Alright," Robin shouted. "Titans, Go!"

Inside the building, Beast Boy was not faring to well. Exhausted from his speedy flight to the city, his decent into the building was interrupted by several breaks so he could catch his breath.

_Why the hell am I always the one that has to go in from behind?_ He thought to himself as he looked for an elevator. Finding none, he sighed and continued back into the stairwell. Panting, he used his fatigue and exhaustion to motivate himself and block out the pain and emotion that had been occupying his mind.

As he neared the basement, he could hear the explosions and the crumbling of the walls as Dr. Light proceeded into the testing area. _I sure hope the others aren't too far behind…_ he thought. _Taking this whack-o by myself wouldn't be easy. Or bright._

Kicking open the stairwell door, Beast Boy found himself in the basement testing lab of the SolarCel building. A flash of light directed him to his opponent, and into a most forbidding room. Debris from the ceiling covered unconscious bodies on the floor, paper was thrown around, and there was a clear path of destruction leading up to a skinny, but obviously very dangerous figure.

Though there was a great distance between them, Beast Boy heard Dr. Light speaking to himself, as if he were delivering a sermon.

"Soon, I will have the prototype Photon Irradiator and all the power of the sun's light shall be mine!" the mad doctor exclaimed.

Regretting his decision the moment it was made, Beast Boy realized that he had no other choice than to engage the doctor until the rest of the Titan's joined him. It was either that, or get thrashed when Dr. Light got a hold of the… whatchamacallit. Shaking his head, Beast Boy straightened himself and readied for battle.

"Hey!" he called, attempting to sound brave. "I hope you're gonna clean this place up when you're done!"

Dr. Light froze. Slowly turning around, he wore an expression of fear. As he swung a full 180 degrees, he realized that there was no one in the area except for him, and the only green-skinned inhabitant of jump city.

"Just you this time?" Dr. Light asked with a smirk. "or did your friends willingly send you to your doom!"

With that, a beam of light exploded from his hand and flew straight for the green teen. In a fury of panic, Beast Boy changed into a mouse and began darting back and forth between the blasts.

_Left, right, right, left, left!_ His animal instincts guided him through the maze of explosions and towards his target. When he was finally in range, Beast Boy changed again. A bull slammed its head into the luminous villain, sending him flying into the large metal door on the wall behind him. Recuperating quickly, Dr. Light caught sight of the bull making another charge.

"Not so fast!" Dr. Light sent an array of bright flashes into the bull's eyes. Stumbling and sliding onto it's side, the green tinted animal resumed its human form. Giving a weak moan, Beast Boy regained his footing and stood up, and readied himself for another blast. With his full attention on the doc, Beast Boy never noticed the soft beeping of the explosive Robin had just planted on the wall to the right.

Chaos erupted as the wall shattered like a window. Fire and concrete were mixed in a furious explosion that shook the foundation of the building. Robin and Starfire cam running out of the hole in the wall. Robin held his bo staff out in front of him as Starfire's hands became engulfed with green energy.

"You just never learn, do you?" Robin asked through gritted teeth. "Titan's! Go!"

Starfire shot forward with incredible speed towards Dr. Light. In a flash, Dr. Light caught her in a band of light that rendered her motionless on the floor. He smirked at Robin's stunned expression and turned to run.

"Starfire!" Robin shouted at the top of his lungs. She was unconscious, but unharmed as it would seem. "Beast Boy, don't let him get away!"

As if he already knew, the green teen assumed the form of a cheetah and sprinted after him. Hearing a growl behind him, Dr. Light produced his light whip and caught Beast Boy around the legs. Failing once again to get close to his target, Beast Boy cursed silently in a fit of rage and frustration.

All at once, none of that seemed to matter. Dr. Light sprinted into the testing room and closed the door behind him. Walking up to the sheet of steel between him and his adversary, Beast Boy changed into an ape and threw a mighty punch into the center. Again and again he struck, but aside from bending and denting, the door did not budge.

"Forget it Beast Boy," Robin said, sounding slightly strained. "All of the doors of this testing lab are tempered and reinforced."

Robin was holding Starfire on her feet with her left arm over his shoulders. Walking towards Beast Boy, he sat her down against the wall where she slid down and held her head.

"It seems that the Dr. Light has become more ambitious," the tamaranian said softly.

"And more dangerous," Robin added. "Alright team, Raven and Cyborg are coming through the other side of the lab to flank Dr. Light. We need to get through this door and make sure his attention is on all of us."

Beast Boy nodded. Thinking clearly again, he gave a long hard stare at the door. Indents and bruised knuckles were all that remained after his assault on the door. The door was most unwilling to give way. Robin, however, had other plans.

From his utility belt, Robin produced a round device. Attatching it to the door, he pressed the center button of the device. A red light began to flash as the device started to beep. Walking back, the three Titan's watched the door cautiously. The beeping grew faster and faster. Finally, a single tone rang out and the door was blown clean of the wall.

"Move!" Robin shouted as he sprinted for the door.

Dr. Light had finally reached his destination. With a grin, he blasted the lock off a vault on the wall. Opening the small door, he removed the device that the Titan's were attempting to keep him from. Attaching it to the back of his suit, the Dr. began to laugh.

"Finally!" he exclaimed with sinister excitement. "All of the power of the sun shall finally be mine! No one in the world will be able to stop me!"

The device began to hum as extraordinary power flowed into his suit. The air around him crackled and the mad Dr. began to laugh.

His victory celebration was short lived. Out of the corner of his eye, Dr. Light spotted an incoming object. Turning to get a better look, he was able to make out the shape of the object just in time. Surrounding himself in a barrier of light, he barely saved himself from the large metal door. Turning to face his attackers, he was greeted by the last two Titan's.

"Sorry to interrupt the victory celebration," Cyborg shouted. "But you're not leavin' without a pair of cuffs!"

His sonic cannon was charged and ready to fire. Raven was levitating to his left, eye's glowing white. To his right, a green explosion sent the door flying and the remaining Titan's entered the room. Not stopping to take a breath, Robin charged the villain.

"Titan's, take him down!"

All five of the Titan's attacked at once, but all were in vain. Smirking, the doctor sent a blast of light that knocked all of the teen superheroes into the wall in the back of the room. Dr. Light slowly walked over to them, his hands glowing with light.

"I think you have it backwards," he chuckled. "I'm not the one who's going to be sorry!"

With that, he fired a charged blast of light at the five heroes. All five Teen Titans were thrown through the side of the building and into the parking lot. Groaning, they stood up and readied themselves for another attack.

The watched as Dr. Light walked out into the sunlight. His suit began to give off a faint glow. Light crackled from his fingertips as he balled his hands into fists. Light surrounded him as he readied to fire again. This time however, the Titans were ready.

Starfire unleashed a beam of green energy to intercept Dr. Light's power. As the two beams connected, it was apparent that more power was needed by the Titans. Cyborg joined in with his sonic cannon, and Raven assisted with her dark magic. The Titan's combined power seemed to match that of Dr. Light. Seeing this, Robin and Beast Boy went in for the assault.

Robin hurled an explosive disk, but it met with a shield of light surrounding the Dr.

Out of nowhere, Dr. Light's suit began to crackle with more power. The sun's rays were increasing the power of his suit. With a yell, the beam of light overpowered Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire and the three were thrown onto their backs. Dr. Light turned and delivered and equally powerful blow to Robin and Beast Boy, but the green teen managed to dodge the blast in time. Darting back and forth, the changeling gained ground on his adversary.

At the last possible moment, Beast Boy took the form of a Ram and slammed into Dr. Light, sending him 20 feet back and onto his stomach. Taking this to his advantage, Beast Boy charged again. Dr. Light, now boiling with anger from the attack, hit him with a very forceful blast that send the green titan into the ground. Dr. Light now only had to contend with 4 titans, but that was no joke nonetheless.

Cyborg fired his sonic cannon, but Dr. Light deflected the blast towards Starfire. Starfire dodged and began hurling starbolts towards the villain. They made contact with the light shield, but it was enough of a distraction. Robin made his move, delivering a kick to the device on Dr. Light's back. Instead of breaking, the device merely sent Dr. Light in a circle. Catching his balance, the Dr. hit Robin with a blast of light.

"Enough!" Raven shouted. Her anger was building from the sight of her fallen comrades. "This end's now!"

Dr. Light took a step back as Raven levitated into the air. He was still slightly unnerved by her due to the incident during their first encounter. This time however, he was feeling up to the challenge. Off in the distance, Beast Boy was running back to assist his friends when he caught a view of the impending scene. Though he knew Raven was perfectly capable or taking down Dr. Light, he still was not willing to let him escape if something happened.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" Raven shouted. Her black aura erupted from her hands and flew towards her target. Her impending anger fueled her powers, but she made sure to keep the dangerous emotion in check. Dr. Light responded with a beam of his own. The two connected, darkness battling light. The device on Dr. Lights back was suffering considerable stress; it was only a prototype after all. It began to emit sparks and to make a very loud humming sound.

Raven began to sweat. As her power was drained she failed to notice that Dr. Light was winning…

The beams disconnected as Dr. Light moved out of the way of Raven's attack. He threw an array of blinding flashes right at the gothic girl. Losing all sight, Raven plummeted towards the ground. Noticing this, Starfire attempted to catch her, but Dr. Light had another idea. He fired another charged blast at Raven, knocking her out of freefall and into the side of the SolarCel building.

Before anyone could react to that, Dr. Light was hit behind by an incredible force. The tail of a Tyrannosaurus Rex smashed into him, devastating the overworked Photon Irradiator and throwing the villain into the building wall. Changing back, Beast Boy and the rest of the titans went over to check on Raven.

"Raven!" Beast Boy shouted, with panic and concern driving his tone and adrenaline. He slid to a stop over her unconscious figure. She was bruised, scraped, and bleeding from somewhere. The ground and her cloak were stained with blood. In a rush, Beast Boy began to pick her up. While in the process of getting Raven off of the debris, he sensed that something was amiss.

"Hey guys, I'm gonna take Raven back to the tower," he said with a shaky voice. "The rest of you should probably chase down Dr. Light."

"What are you talkin about man?" Cyborg asked. "You just threw him into the wall…"

Looking over to the spot where Dr. Light hit the wall he noticed that the villain was nowhere to be found.

"What the hell!" Cyborg said with anguish. "What the hell do we have to do to bring that skinny little bastard down?"

Beast Boy had taken the form of a pterodactyl. Picking Raven up with his claws, the titan flew off as fast as he could towards Titan's Tower.

"I do hope that friend Raven will be alright…" Starfire said, sounding slightly depressed.

"She'll be okay Starfire," Robin said, gritting his teeth. "Dr. Light on the other hand isn't going to be so good once we catch him."

With that, the three titans took off down the streets of Jump City.

Beast Boy finally had the tower in sight. It seemed so far away, and Raven could only lose so much more blood. He pumped his wings harder, but it was all in vein. Looking towards the tower, he wished with all he had that he could go just a little bit faster.

All of a sudden, Beast Boy felt a tingling sensation on his back. He looked up at the horizon and saw a pair of giant grey eyes floating in the sky just above the horizon. Baffled at the sight, the titan shook his head and blinked rapidly.

When he reopened his eyes, he saw nothing but the clear horizon. In fact, he didn't even see the tower. Panicking he looked around only to see the tower directly beneath him. Nearly dropping Raven in confusion, Beast Boy landed on the roof. Changing back and carrying Raven in his arms, he went as quickly as he could to the Titan's infirmary, praying that Raven would recover soon.

Somewhere off in the emptiness of space, on a remote planet similar to earth, a fiery portal opened. The sentient inhabitants of the planet ran away, but they could not escape the mysterious power that wiped the planet clean of life. Nothing was left alive. The sky was darkened and red, and demons of fire swarmed out across the land.

All at once, everything was silent. The only sound that could be heard was the breathing of a large beast-like creature. Slowly the breathing became quieter and quieter. Finally when all way silent, it spoke in a deep, forbidding voice.

"You may have banished me, but this entire universe will be mine!"

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**MWAHAHA So thats the end of chapter 2. Hope you all liked it! Or, at least, i hope you didn't hate it hahaha. Review please! I need to know how i'm doing! And thanks for reading!**

**PS: Did anyone pick up on the reason for the title? It's very subtle, during the fight outside. If not, you'll get it later!**


	4. Mind over Matter

**So, here we are again. In my profile thing I have a more formal apology, but I would still like to say again that i'm very sorry about the extended absence. I'm glad, however, that i didn't recieve 23087 pounds of hate mail for not finishing a story. because i'm going to finish it. anywhos, here's the third chapter, hope you enjoy :-D**

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**Chapter 3: Mind over Matter**

_Heart Rate: 82_

_O-2 Saturation: 94_

_Blood Pressure: 126/72_

Beast Boy monitored Raven continuously the second he had her in the Medbay. There was a gash in Raven's back that needed stitches, several minor scrapes and bruises, and a dislocated shoulder from the fall. _It's a good thing she's unconscious,_ Beast Boy thought. _I wouldn't be able to bear hearing her in pain_. He was too concerned to question his feelings, for he had never felt any emotion as strongly as he did now.

It was fortunate for Raven that Beast Boy had taught himself some first aid. Many injuries in battle taught him that being able to patch himself up was one of the most important things he could learn. Now, all he had to do was apply that knowledge to another person. After gathering the proper equipment and supplies, he was finally ready to begin.

Though the bleeding had stopped, the gash was still at a very high risk of infection and could still be torn open by a sudden change in blood pressure. Beast Boy knew that Raven could heal herself, but he did not want to risk her losing anymore blood than she already had. With scissors in hand, he began to cut her leotard away from the area he needed to sew. As he peeled away the black material, he began to notice certain things about Raven's physique that he had not picked up on.

For starters, he had never noticed that she had perfect skin. So smooth and creamy, and just the right tint of white to make her appear both delicate and deadly at the same time. Her back curved perfectly down to her waist. Beast Boy blushed as he caught himself admiring the perfection of her lower anatomy as well.

Still red in the face, the green titan cleaned the wound and pulled a few small pebbles from the skin before beginning to delicately sew it shut. One stitch at a time was all he could handle. The nervousness of causing his friend more pain that had already brought her was too great to contain. However, with shaking hands Beast Boy managed to get the stitches into an optimal position for the opening to heal.

After closing the major injury, Beast Boy's relief allowed him to go over the rest of Raven's body and apply the proper first aid to her dizzying array of scrapes, cuts, and bruises. _For such a delicate looking person, she sure can take a beating,_ Beast Boy thought to himself. Of course, he knew this from experience time and time again, but it still amazed him what resolve she had.

Without warning, Raven's body began to levitate in the air. The shape shifter jumped back in alarm, moving the medical supplies out of the way just in time. The pale figure flipped over in the air, 

and began to gently bob up and down. Beast Boy smiled, knowing that Raven's healing powers, though they lacked their own feelings, would 'appreciate' the help. Turning off all but a few of the lights, the green hero pulled up a chair 3 feet away from the bed. He wasn't leaving that room until Raven woke up and he knew she was okay.

Red, White, and Blue lights flashed in unison. Sirens sounded every couple seconds, but never from the same car. Three teenagers stood next to a prison transport as a battered man in a rather odd looking suit was hauled in. A collected Cyborg had to restrain a more than furious Robin from further injuring the villain just minutes before and was still not convinced that the boy wonder was calm. Starfire was in a near blind panic about Raven's injury. Flying back and forth between the two titans and a spot 20 feet away, her voice seemed endless as she voiced her worries and emotions.

"But what if friend Beast Boy did not get back to the tower in time?" She screeched. "Oh, I do hope we may return home soon please!"

Biting her lip, she noticed that Robin still hadn't taken his eyes off of the prison transport containing Dr. Light. Cyborg was still holding both of Robin's arms out to the side in order to keep him under control. Starfire watched as the transport started up, and a platoon of squad cars escorted the highly dangerous criminal to prison. The six pairs of eyes didn't leave the vehicles until the very last one turned the corner out of sight.

Abruptly, Cyborg released Robin's arms. The masked hero simply let them fall to his side. With a sigh, he looked over his shoulder towards a worried looking Starfire. As the corner of his mouth gently curved upward, he turned around and embraced the Tamaranian. Cyborg was shocked at his initial action after being released, but he figured it was better than having to chase after him.

"Hey," he said subtly, with a smirk. "Ya'll should save the mushy stuff for a closed room."

Starfire gave a quizzical look, but Robin's expression returned to that of dire seriousness. Producing his communicator, he called Beast Boy with a certain panic in is head,

"Beast boy, report." A grim look crossed Robin's face. He knew Raven was not in good shape when she left in Beast Boy's care. What he was not aware of was the care that Beast Boy had invested into Raven's wellbeing.

"She's fine dude." A green face appeared on the tiny screen, wearing a weak but proud smile. A screech of joy flooded the streets.

"Oh friend Beast Boy!!" Starfire exclaimed. "It is wonderous to hear that you have been successful in applying the first aid to Raven! Please, inform us of her condition!"

"I managed to stop the major blood loss, and she is in her trance at the moment. So, aside from the shredded uniform, she'll be just fine."

The hellish tension of the moment was freed from the shoulders of the three Titan's as Starfire's euphoric state seemed to become more intense. She giggled madly as she lifted Robin off of his feet and began kissing him furiously. Nearly unable to breathe, Robin had forgotten about his open communicator and began passionately kissing back.

Unable to hold back, Beast Boy and Cyborg erupted with fits of laughter. Teary eyed and unable to breathe, Cyborg fell to the ground and rolled over onto his back. Beast Boy's fit was much more contained, however. He did not wish to wake Raven, and he knew that her wounds would hurt like all hell if she were to regain consciousness now. That did not stop him from giggling like a love sick school girl.

"I'll see you guys when ya get back, hahahaha!"Beast Boy closed his communicator, still struck with laughter as the transmission cut out.

Cyborg stood up and made his way over to the now embarrassed, but rather euphoric teenagers. Smiling, they embraced each other again. As they released, Robin looked towards his robotic companion.

"Let's get back to the tower," he said in a slightly dreamy tone. "We should be there when Raven wakes up." Starfire nodded in agreement. Without wasting any time, she lifted both hero's into the air and sped towards Titan's Tower.

_Where am I?_

Raven stared into the endless darkness. There was not a single source of light that she could see. The scared titan couldn't even see her hands in front of her face. Afraid of falling, she didn't attempt to move from her spot on… well, where ever she was, she did not want to move. Fear held her mind and body at a standstill, every breath was choked and coarse, and every sense in her body was put on high alert in order to answer one simple question.

_Where am I?_

Closing her eyes to concentrate was no longer necessary, but she found it to be much more comfortable when she did. Memories slowly started to flow back as Raven recalled the events of the batter between her and Dr. Light.

_Raven began to sweat. As her power was drained she failed to notice that Dr. Light was winning…_

_The beams disconnected as Dr. Light moved out of the way of Raven's attack. He threw an array of blinding flashes right at the gothic girl. Losing all sight, Raven plummeted towards the ground. Noticing this, Starfire attempted to catch her, but Dr. Light had other plans. He fired another charged blast at Raven, knocking her out of freefall and into the side of the SolarCel building._

After that, she had found herself in this place, encased in eternal darkness. _Perhaps, this is death?_ She silently asked herself the question over and over. Going over her final memories over and over, she concluded that death was the only possible option. She knew her back had been split open, and the force of the pain that followed has caused her to lose consciousness. The loss of blood was substantial, but soon Raven realized that she wasn't dead, merely unconscious.

_Waking up would definitely be a good idea right about now,_ she told herself. Closing her eyes again, she concentrated on waking her body, but the only thing she achieved was a shooting pain in her forehead. Gritting her teeth and clutching her head, the dark girl decided it was best to let her natural cycle determine the time of her awakening. Feeling considerably more secure than she had, Raven relaxed and fell softly to her back. Enjoying the very comforting silence of her own mind, Raven didn't notice that her abyss was no longer empty.

A flickering light in the distance seemed to beckon the half-demon. Failing to be noticed, the flicker became larger brighter. Catching notice of this, Raven sat up abruptly and stared. _Am I finally waking up?_ She asked, slightly disappointed. The flicked began to hold steady, but the intensity continued to brighten. It was only then that she noticed the light was not white, but red.

Before she had any time to think, flames erupted all around her. Screaming blazes of flame scorched the inside of her mind with seemingly limitless heat. Clutching her head again, Raven felt as if the flames were splitting her skull in two. As the pain began to subside, Raven could finally see her body…

Covered in writing of another world, she stared at her arms, legs, and body in confusion. Some of the symbols looked familiar…

"NO!" Raven screamed. "This can't be happening! This is just a dream!" All around her, the flamed danced their fiery waltz. They almost seemed to be laughing at their captive writhing in pain. Flaring up quickly, the flames withdrew and revealed the world as Raven had seen it before her father had taken over the first time.

Lava filled what once was the ocean, the city stood in ruins, and any living thing that could be seen was turned to stone. As far as the eye could see, destruction had laid to waste everything Raven knew. She shook her head as if what she saw was merely an illusion, but the scene remained. Then, as if on cue, a terrible roar echoed through her mind.

Clutching her head again, she felt her body hoisted off the ground by a tremendous force. Barely able to tolerate the pain inside her head, she slowly opened her eyes to find herself in the palm of her demonic father.

"NO!" she screamed in denial. "You're gone! You can't be here!"

Trigon gave a low chuckle as his mortal daughter screamed in agony. His 4 glowing red eyes burned with the darkness that fueled him. He allowed the pain to subside in Raven. Panting as if she had 

just run 2 miles, Raven slowly rose to her feet. With hatred in her heart and fear in her mind, she turned to face the tyrant of darkness.

Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire walked into the infirmary to find Raven floating above the bed and Beast Boy sitting in a chair reading one of his comic books. Beast Boy looked up to see his friends enter and he jumped up.

"Hey grass stain!" Cyborg shouted to the green titan.

"SHHH!!" Beast Boy gestured his friend to keep the volume down so as to not wake the sleeping Raven.

"Ah," Cyborg said in a much lower tone. "Sorry about that."

"How is she, Beast Boy?" Robin asked with concern lingering in his voice. Although his heart belonged to Starfire, Robin still cared for his friends very deeply. The fact that he had not tended to his fallen comrade himself instilled a great sense that he had let the dark girl down. However, as Beast Boy responded, his mood lightened.

"I had to close the wound on her back, but she'll be alright once she finishes healing herself."

The tension in the room immediately released into a wave of mild discomfort. The stress of the day taking its toll, the three titan's fatigue finally caught up to them. A smile crept over their faces as their eyelids began to droop.

"That's excellent," Robin said with a sigh. Cyborg and Starfire nodded in agreement. "I think I'm going to get some work done though."

"It's alright dude," Beast Boy said with a smile. "I'm gonna stay here and make sure she stay's alright." With that, Beast Boy slouched back in his chair with a sigh and flipped his comic book back open.

"Um, boyfriend Robin?" Starfire asked with a quizzical expression.

"Yes, Star?" the boy wonder replied with a smile.

"Are your earth storage devices supposed to float?"

Looking over to where she was pointing, Cyborg and Robin saw that a cabinet containing various medical supplies was rising off the ground.

"H-How did you s-survive?!" Raven demanded with panic saturating her voice.

The Lord of Darkness grinned, and brought her slightly closer. Another chuckle escaped his throat as Trigon focused all four eyes on Raven.

"Silly little girl," he mocked. "Did you really think you could be rid of me that easily? Did you really think that with all my powers at my disposal that you could defeat me?"

Gritting her teeth in anger, Raven found that she could not move. Whether it was out of fear or some dark magic that her father had cast, she did not know. All she knew was that with each passing moment her fear grew and grew.

"I am the lord of all Darkness! I am Trigon! I am invincible! And no one, not even you can possibly hope to defeat me!"

As the demon roared, the pain returned to Raven in much greater waves than before. She clenched her teeth and dug her nails into her head, but nothing could stop the suffering she was experiencing. The dark girl threw her head back and screamed in brutal agony as tears began to stream down her face…

The cabinet shattered, and as it did numerous objects began to fly across the room. Beast Boys chair flew out from under him as the windows in the room shattered into thousands of tiny shards. A small table flew towards Robin, but Starfire managed to blast it in time.

"What the hell is goin' on?!" Cyborg shouted as the lights in the room turned black and shattered one by one. Ceiling tiles began flying downward, crashing into various objects and exploding on contact. Rubbing his head from the fall, Beast Boy quickly realized the danger around him and turned to run.

"RAVEN!"

Beast Boy turned on the spot. He was not about to abandon his friend amidst the chaos in the infirmary. Transforming his shape into a gorilla he proceeded to bash flying in order to gain ground on Raven's position. Looking at the pale girl, he noticed something quite odd. There was an area around Raven that no object had entered. It was at that moment that the green titan felt relieved and panicked at the same time. It was both of those feelings that compelled him to run for his life.

Narrowly escaping the torrent of shattered glass and metal that had become the med bay, Beast Boy reunited with the rest of the team. Unfortunately, they were preoccupied with another problem…

"Did you really think that your feeble powers could defeat me?" Trigon mocked through a toothy grin. Raven was curled up in a ball shrieking in pain. Every sound of anguish gave Trigon delight.

"Please!" Raven whimpered. "Please make it stop!!"

The glow in Trigon's eyes subsided slightly as Raven gasped for air. Panting, she rose to her feet, not wanting to give the sadistic creature any satisfaction.

"As amusing as physically torturing you is, I have something better in mind."

Raven gritted her teeth and glared at the abomination she knew as her father. She hated him with every ounce of her being. There was nothing that she would like more than to kill him slowly and painfully, but now this was just a vision. Or at least, that's what she kept telling herself.

"Raven"

Trigon's voice boomed out like a cannon. Though in her mind's mind she knew this to be a vision, something else was nagging her to believe that there was something to this…

"You have known that my coming was unstoppable, but this turn of events was most unforeseen"

Her hatred grew, if possible, with every word that slipped past his demonic lips. She could feel herself begin to shake with rage.

The common room of Titan's Tower was tearing itself apart. Left and right various objects were crashing into each other or exploding on the spot. Pipes were twisting out of the walls and bending in all different directions. The computer screens began to explode one by one and every one of the chairs found themselves smashing into every object they could find.

"What the hell is goin' on here man?" Cyborg shouted, barely dodging. "It's like the tower is tearing itself apart!"

Just as he spoke, there was a great explosion that shook the tower. Earsplitting cracks and snaps filled the Titans' ears. After a moment of silence, an enormous crash sounded below them. Cyborg was already having a panic attack from the sight in the common room, but when the crash sounded, he nearly fainted.

Sprinting back to the medical center, the four Titan's found a large piece of the tower missing. It looked as if a piece of the tower had just shattered and fallen to the ground below. A large hole occupied what used to be the rest of the infirmary. The I-beams and steel re-enforced frame of the entire structure was being torn apart.

"Titans! Move!" Robin shouted as another explosion rocked the building, this time coming from the common room. Looking back, Beast Boy could see that the entire side had been blown to pieces. As debris rained down in their heads, Robin and Cyborg were lifted out of the way by Starfire.

"Man, the whole building is comin' down!" Cyborg yelled. "There is no WAY I'm getting' into that elevator!" He had a point… Even if they made it to the elevator without sever injuries, there was still that whole exploding, now unstable structure thing.

"Starfire," Robin shot a glance at his alien girlfriend. "Fly us out of here!"

Grabbing and arm in each hand, the teenage alien lifted both Cyborg and Robin out of the hole in the Infirmary. Beast Boy ran to Raven to lift her out of the collapsing, however, he was met by a 

torrent of debris and shattered glass. Receiving numerous cuts, bangs, and bruises in his attempt, the green titans remained determined to move Raven to a safe location.

"Damn it Raven," He yelled over the explosions and crashes. Jumping out of the way, he narrowly dodged a falling hunk of metal from the roof. Diving onto the pale hero, he managed to get out of harm's way.

As he looked at Raven up close, he noticed that her relaxed expression was replaced by one full of pain. Her jaw was clenched, teeth slightly bared, fists clenched, and her brow was scrunched up. His heart sunk at the expression he read. _She's doing all this while in pain_, he thought to himself. All at once it clicked…

"RAVEN!" Beast Boy shouted at the top of his lungs. "Raven please! You have to wake up! You have to wake up!"

But Raven would not budge. Her healing trance kept her in a deep sleep and not even the howling gale of destruction surrounding her could wake her. Not willing to give up however, he tried again. Shaking her back and forth, he tried again and again in vain. It was not until a support beam took out the remaining bare floor of the infirmary.

"Why am I still seeing you?" Raven asked, with a slight quiver in her voice. "You're gone, and this is all in my head…"

Trigon let loose a full belly laugh. He grinned an evil grin at his mortal daughter that made her blood run cold. His eyes flashed a smug, almost victorious look. Raven's cold blood boiled with anger. She was relentless when controlling her emotions when she was in the real world, but in her mind there was no such need. Thinking of emotions and experiencing them were to different things… right?

"Dear daughter," The great demon spoke in his thunderous voice. "You can't even begin to understand the powers at work here." Raven shifted uncomfortably. "You couldn't destroy me silly little girl." She became even more panicked as the nightmare that plagued her mind since Trigon's defeat played itself out again.

"I have already returned"

Carrying an unconscious girl was one thing, but being the size of a gorilla in a collapsing structure was something else. The green ape dodged left and right, using his body as a shield for his unconscious teammate. Crashing through debris and dodging the rest, Beast Boy moved as fast as possible without getting himself killed.

_LEFT!_

The primal instincts of the gorilla directed him past an unnervingly large piece of ceiling support. Weaving in and out, the green titan was barely making any forward progress at all…

It was subtle, but in one moment, Beast Boy saw an opening. Not wishing to remain trapped, he moved with all the speed his form would grant him. Dodging falling debris while trying to stay on a constantly changing path is never an easy thing to do. Smashing his way through the wall, Beast Boy realized there was no longer a floor beneath him.

Looking up, he was the hole gathering vertical distance as the debris falling around him matched his speed. Suddenly, and explosion rocked the air around him and Raven was knocked from his grasp.

"RAVEN!"

Quickly changing forms, Beast boy moved at unimaginable speed upward towards his pale comrade. _Eagle; _Beast Boy spread wings and slowed his falling. _Too much!_ Raven when flying downward past him. _Kangaroo; _ Flipping himself upside down, beast boy began throwing himself downward off of nearby pieces of debris. As he approached Raven, he changed again. _Gorilla;_ Grabbing Raven, Beast Boy threw his companion upwards and out of the path of falling debris. _Kangaroo;_ pushing off of the closest piece of debris with all his might, the green teen threw himself out of the path of the debris, flipped upside down, changed into a pterodactyl, caught Raven in mid-flight, flipped right side up, and managed to stop himself barely a foot from the ground.

"No! NO!! NOOOO!!"

Raven screamed in pain and a truth suddenly washed over her; Trigon had returned in spite of her previous efforts, and he was on his way to earth. Panicking, her mind raced, trying to think of a way to wake herself up from this hellish nightmare and warn her friends.

"It doesn't matter if you wake up," boomed the red giant. "In fact, you might not wake up at all."

Raven's eyes snapped open. She could feel energy flowing from her body, but it was being willed away from her. It was almost as if…

"You bastard!" she screamed with a ravenous vengeance. "You've been channeling my powers!"

"Foolish child! It is my power that you bear, and I will do with it as I please." Trigon snarled as he snatched up the cloaked girl in his hand and held her high. "You are nothing in the grand scheme. Just another worthless insect!"

Gasping for air, Raven saw what she had seen in the last vision: A large pair of grey eyes staring at Trigon with unspeakable hatred. Before she had time to think again, unbearable pain shot threw her mind again.

"And now, you have no hope left." Trigon smirked as he began to squeeze.

Raven's eyes rolled back, what little light there was faded from view, and she could feel her body being crushed by the massive hand that held her.

_**ENOUGH**_

A voice boomed in her mind. Trigon's grip was released as he threw his hands to his head. Raven caught herself in mid fall and hovered in the darkness. The pair of eyes behind Trigon was now glowing.

_**Awaken. Do what you must. WASTE NO TIME!**_

Hearing the voice in her head was slightly painful, even as an experienced telepath. Hearing the last word, the darkness around her began to lighten, and a blinding flash ended the sadistic vision.

"She's coming to!"

Raven blinked several times to rid the light from her eyes. As she adjusted to the light, she could make out two forms standing above her. Moaning, Raven began to roll over. It was then she realized that she was no longer in Titan's tower.

"Where… am I?"

"RAVEN!!"

Before anyone had the chance to answer her question, She was thrust off the ground and into the semi-lethal embrace of Starfire and Beast Boy together.

"If you don't mind, I usually like to breathe when I wake up…"

As the embrace ended, two body's hit the ground. Raven had collapsed from extreme mental pain. Beast Boy, however, had attempted to catch her and fell as well because of the severe physical pain plaguing his body. Turning her head, she saw a bruise and blood covered Beast Boy, halfway unconscious. Looking up slightly, she determined the cause.

Titan's Tower was reduced to a few standing supports and a massive pile of rubble. Debris coated the island as if a large explosion had blown the tower apart. A silent tear fell down her moon white cheek as she realized the cause. Trigon could be here any second, their home was destroyed, and to make matters worse, two members of the team were battered and in no condition to fight.

"We've got a big problem…"

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**What did you think?! :-D:-D:-D yea... i just want to get past chapter 5 and move right on to 6, but again, gotta build it up. dont worry though, it'll be worth it! i hope... GAH! please please please review and let me know what you think! and for those waiting for fluff, don't worry, i won't disappoint :-P**

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	5. A Dark Arrival

**Hey everyone, i know it's been a while and probably no one is interested in reading anymore of this lol. Oh well, i'll still post stuff just in case. Anywho, in this chapter Raven tells the team about her vision, and Robin throws the Titan's into action! I hope you enjoy!**

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**Chapter 4: A Dark Arrival**

"WHAT?!"

The rest of the team stared in disbelief at the dark girl. Telling her companions that the world would end _again_ had never even crossed her mind. Not knowing how to buffer the information, she repeated her blunt, yet clearly obvious statement.

"Trigon is back. He is on his way here."

A deathly stare was the Teen Titan's only response. Each of them recounting the events of the last time Raven's demon father had arrived on earth. Though knowing Raven's seriousness about this matter, Robin was still skeptical.

"Raven," he spoke sternly, as if to a misbehaving child. "We were all there. We watched you end his life. You destroyed him with a huge burst of power!"

Raven could only continue to stare at the ground. Knowing it was true wasn't enough for everyone else. Only she had received the vision. Her body had been possessed by the very thing she had destroyed. The thoughts sickened her to the very core.

"Raven!"

Two violet eyes snapped upward to meet with two others hidden behind a mask. The stare was brief, but the message was conveyed. Robin was taking this as seriously as it could possibly be taken. He needed to be absolutely sure that she wasn't mistaken. It was only when their stare broke that he finally understood.

Her eyes leaving Robin's gaze, Raven looked toward the tower. Their headquarters, their sanctuary, their _home_ had been reduced to a smoldering heap of rubble and ash. Everything they owned, every comfort, every convenience lay underneath the once proud construct.

"Do you really think I would have done something like that?" Raven quietly asked. "Even if I could somehow control my powers while unconscious, I would never."

As if they all knew what was coming next, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Starfire, and Robin could only stare as the next words left their comrade's mouth.

"_H_ewas controlling my powers."

Only silence followed. Cyborg slowly shook his head, as if wanting to deny any possibility of the current situation being real. Starfire merely shook in fear and panic. Robin continued to stared, though more sternly than before. All the while, no one seemed to notice the fact that beast boy had passed out, both from pain and exertion.

Raven felt like she was falling. Everything was happening again, and once again there was nothing she could do to stop it. Everything was spiraling out of control…

"So when does this happen?"

Looking up again, a stray tear escaped Raven's eye and was lost on the ground as her head turned upward. Robin was staring at her with the same piercing eyes, but this time there was no doubt I them. He was calm, collected, and formulating a plan.

"Yea, when's this goin' down?"

Turning around, Raven saw that Cyborg's mood had changed to match Robin's. Starfire looked up at the one she held most dear and stood as well. Beast boy let out a timely moan, as if signifying his approval. Raven's fear remained, but she understood Robin's train of thought. Even if things looked hopeless, they had to try. They defeated the monster once; maybe they could do it again.

"That part of the vision wasn't clear. He said that he was already here. He must be on his way. We have to assume that he could arrive at anytime."

"That should be our first priority; determining the method by which Trigon intends on returning."

Starfire let out a small gasp, and then proceeded to clutch Raven's hand with a considerable grip.

"We will not allow him to enter though our friend again!" A certain anger filled her voice as her eyes began to glow. "No one will take friend Raven from us again!"

Raven felt relief flow over her as if she were being bathed in it. The mere fact that her friends were so determined to protect her made her feel warm inside. Her friends, her… family, were there to protect her. And she would give her life defending them.

At that moment, there was a tremendous thunderclap. Lightning illuminated the cloudless sky as if the earth itself was issuing a warning of the demon's coming. Looking up, it almost seemed like the weather had a mind of its own. Clouds were forming at an alarming rate, and the ominous lightning refused to stop. Wind's picked up as if pushing the Titan's to action.

"Well, whatever we're gonna do," Cyborg said, observing the changing weather," we should do it fast. I doubt we've got much time left."

"Friend Beast Boy?"

Starfire had caught on to Beast Boy's condition. She was attempting to wake him, but to no avail. Looking at Beast Boy as if he were an idiot, Raven frowned slightly and made her feelings known.

"He would be the only one to pass out at a time like this."

Cyborg's eyes went wide with anger and sadness for his injured comrade. Grabbing Raven by the shoulders, he spin her around and brought the dark girl mere inches from his face. Almost able to smell the surprise and fear radiating off of Raven, the robotic titan made _his_ thoughts known.

"If it wasn't for that passed out idiot," he said through gritted teeth. "You'd probably be dead."

What little color there was in Raven's face left as soon as the words entered her ears. She didn't even notice that she had been let go. Cyborg knew his point was made and moved to Robin's side. Starfire picked the green titan up off the ground and carried him to Robin. Raven, however, continued to stare at the spot where Beast Boy had fallen unconscious. _He… saved… me?_

"Alright, Titans!" Robin's shout woke Raven from her daze and brought her to immediate attention. "We're going to get the people to shelter. We need to evacuate the city and move everyone to the old bomb shelters underneath the older buildings"

Cyborg crossed his arms. "I thought those shelters were old and out of date?"

"Even so, boyfriend Robin is correct"

Robin and Cyborg looked to the Tamaranian girl. "We don't have any other choice, and this is the fastest way to make sure people are safe."

"Alright, let's get everyone to the shelters! Starfire!"

Looking surprised, Starfire almost dropped Beast Boy. "Yes?"

"Take Beast Boy with you and make sure he's alright. When he regains consciousness, you know what to do."

Nodding, she was startled when Raven put her hand on her shoulder, and she nearly dropped Beast Boy again.

"I'll take Beast Boy."

There were no surprised looks. There was no teasing, no comments, and no poking fun. Starfire simply smiled and handed the unconscious Titan over to her companion.

"Titans, Go!"

Robin and Cyborg were immediately hoisted into the air by Starfire. As they were carried off to the mainland, Raven took to the sky with Beast Boy in her arms. _He… saved me…_

Beyond the reaches of the galaxy, a great power was moving towards the earth. Travelling at impossible speeds, the behemoth growled with anger and accelerated as he felt an all to familiar evil presence grow stronger.

_**I will not allow this to pass. You're will not escape me this time.**_

Passing the asteroid belt, a massive red ball of fire hurdled towards the earth's surface. Malice, anger, and hatred drove it forward and sustained it. Darkness shrouded its path and its trail in an attempt to mask its presence. As the earth's energy swept over him, the demon grinned. _Soon, I will erase this universe from existence .But first, some unfinished business needs to be taken care of…_

And with that, Trigon, the Demon of the Darkness, sped towards the earth, intent on wiping out all life.

Setting down on top of a taller building, Raven gently placed Beast Boy down. All she could do was stare. What Cyborg had said to her was still bouncing around inside her head.

_"If it wasn't for that passed out idiot," he said through gritted teeth. "You'd probably be dead."_

She looked down on him with new eyes. She was… thankful. Not something that she felt often towards Beast Boy. There had been times when he had his moments, but they were rare. Shaking her head out of the daze she was in, Raven began to heal Beast Boy's injuries. Praying he would regain consciousness soon was all she could do. Looking at the sky, she hoped that they Titans would be able to stand against the terrible power her Demonic father wrought. Had she been looking for stars, Raven might have noticed the odd, red, moving speck in the sky.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Jump City people were being lead to the shelters by the titans. Working with the local police was their only option. In the short amount of time that they had arrived, the police force had issued an emergency warning. A distress signal was sent out from the main communitaction hub warning the rest of the country to invoke emergency procedures. Everything possible to be done was done in near record time, but the fear and panic only seemed to grow.

As people were led into the existing fallout shelters, the Titan's could only think of the evil to come. Would there be enough time to evacuate everyone? What would happen if there wasn't enough room? When would _he_ arrive? Questions without answers only led to more questions.

"Let's move people! Go, go, go!" Robin was practically shoving the crowd of people from downtown towards the nearest shelter. Looking around every few seconds, he was ferociously on guard. That's why he noticed the problem first.

Out of the corner of his eye, the boy wonder caught a glimpse of something moving behind a building. However, when he turned to look it was gone. Even though he wasn't convinced that it was nothing, Robin turned back to his current task, ushering people slowly down the street.

"I have spotted something strange!"

Starfire's voice crackled over the radio's of her fellow teammates. All attention was turned to their communicators as Robin, Cyborg, and Raven waited for more.

"It appears that several structures have caught fire!"

"I can see the smoke," Cyborg's voice followed. "I'll take care of the fire."

Raven could only nod and continue to heal Beast Boy. _Faster, faster!_ She compelled herself forward with everything she had, for haunting memories of the last coming of Trigon had chased away her restraint.

Cyborg ran as fast as he could towards the rising smoke hoping that, even with the coming battle, the damage could be kept to a minimum. Jumping over fences, cars, and any other obstacle wasn't as fast as just smashing through, but no matter how fast he ran, nothing could have stopped what had already happened.

_BOOM!_

A massive explosion rippled though the city block where the metallic teen had just arrived. Gas mains lay torn apart in the street, and the building was already collapsing on itself. More surprising still was the fact that the fire just kept getting bigger. It wasn't until Cyborg took a closer look that he realized what was going on.

"Starfire! Robin! Get over here! I'm gonna need some back-up!" The transmission was ended with the sound of Cyborg's sonic cannon, followed by static.

Robin cursed in rage and sped off to the location of Cyborg's last message. Starfire, on the other hand, was already on her way. Looking around for signs of her companion, she only succeeded in finding a raging battle in the streets of jump city.

Cyborg was firing beam after beam at a sea of creatures seemingly spawned by fire. For every one that Cyborg took down, three more seemed to appear. And the space between the mechanical marvel and the fire beasts was decreasing rapidly. Not knowing was else to do, Starfire swooped down next to her friend and began firing starbolts at their attackers.

The advancement was brought to a standstill, but the two teen powerhouses were still not enough to drive the enemy back. Raven could sense the troubled minds of her friends and the stress and anxiety began to overtake them.

"Ugh… what happened…"

Beast Boy began to sit up, becoming more and more aware of his new surroundings. Raven whirled around just in time to see the green hero pull his body back onto his feet. A feeling of warmth overtook her as relief washed her anxiety away.

"Beast Boy!" she exclaimed.

"Raven?" the shapeshifter asked wearily. "Where are we? What's going on?"

Raven's relief quickly returned to panic as she began to explain the situation to her comrade.

"I'm running low on juice, I can't keep holding them off like this!"

Cyborg was under a considerable amount of strain from holding back the wave of flame creatures. Even with Starfire aiding him, the two Titan's alone were no match for the never ending line of fire.

_BOOM!_

A nearby explosion rocked a building sending rubble and debris onto the advancing forces. Looking up, Starfire quickly noticed Robin on top of a nearby building. Glee overtook her as she called out to him.

"Boyfriend Robin! It is good to see that you are still well!"

Cyborg managed to crack a smile as he caught his breath.

"Nothing keeps you down for long does it star?"

Robin's face, however, remained unchanged. His serious demeanor showed no signs of faltering. He knew the seriousness of the situation, and he was determined to remain focused on protecting that which meant most to him; his friends, and his city.

Rappelling down from the building, Robin joined his two companions on the street and began to prepare for the next wave.

"WHAT?! HE'S COMING BACK?!"

Beast Boy was in a state of near shock when he had heard all that Raven had to say. Trigon was coming back, and soon.

"I'm sorry Beast Boy," Raven said softly, "I really thought he was gone too."

Letting out a long sigh and letting his head fall back, Beast Boy tried to contain himself as best as possible in front of Raven. He didn't want to show the same recklessness as last time. No, this time he was determined to protect her with his life.

Raven noticed his attempts to relax himself, and for that she was grateful. She still looked at him differently, ever since Cyborg had told her that Beast Boy had saved her life. She still didn't fully understand why, after everything she had done to the team, and especially to _him_, he would risk his life in such a way to guarantee her safety.

"Huh, I guess that makes sense."

Raven's mind snapped back to reality. She shot her gaze over to Beast Boy.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Her voice quivered slightly with fear.

Looking up still, Beast Boy pointed to the sky.

"It makes sense now, why the sky is that reddish color."

"_Robin, we have a problem!"_ Raven's voice sounded panicked over the communicator. Static had interrupted her transmission slightly, but not enough to skew the message. Throwing his communicator open, Robin answered the call.

"Report! What's the situation?"

Raven's face appeared on the screen, the look of panic was certain.

"He's here!"

Slowly, the red marks on Raven's body from Trigon's last invasion began to relight. She screamed in agony, but static interference cut her off from the rest of the team.

"RAVEN!" Robin yelled. "We have to find her!"

Without even a response, Starfire hoisted both teens up into the air and ontop of the nearest building.

When they had finally gotten their bearings and looked out towards the ocean, they wished they hadn't…

"Raven! Look!" Beast Boy shouted.

Slowly turning around, Raven could feel the pain intensifying. She saw it in the sky…

A massive ball of fire plummeted towards the ocean right in front of the city. She knew at that moment what it was.

"Beast Boy, We need to get the hell out of here!" she shouted in panic.

"Don't worry, Raven. I won't let him hurt you this time" Beast Boy said through gritted teeth. His determination had never been stronger, his resolve never more solid.

In a brilliant flash of light, the falling flames began to gain speed.

"_zzt.. zzt.. Ra..n! Can y.. hear me?"_

Robin's voice came over the communicator.

"Robin!" Raven yelled into the microphone. "He's here!"

Another flash of light was the last thing that came, before a thundering crash and a wall of water signaled Trigon's return to earth.

* * *

**Please comment if you read this, come constructive comments are always a help. And thanks for reading! I'll try to update ASAP**


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